Television producer Ben Winston has “developed a relationship” with Tom Cruise, which is how that 2024 Paris Olympics stunt came to fruition.
“I just pitched to him from start to finish. That first pitch included every element that you saw last night,” Winston, 42, told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published on Monday, August 12. “Only, when I told him, it was a man in a balaclava who jumped from the roof of the stadium.”
Cruise’s feedback? He was going to be the one to perform the stunt by jumping “off the roof” and “drives through Paris.”
Winston knew that would be better.
“The only reason I pitched the balaclava is because it was the difference between a one-day shoot and a four-day shoot plus rehearsals,” the producer continued. Some of the Olympics stunt was filmed in March and while Cruise’s involvement leaked, the details stayed under wraps.
The 2024 Summer Olympics might be taking place in the City of Light, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t come with their fair share of darkness. Following a flashy opening ceremony on Friday, July 26 that continues to draw outrage from some celebrities and religious figures, the Games have been plagued by allegations of sexism […]
“When we were filming with Tom, he was never actually holding the Olympic flag. He always was holding a white flag,” Winton explained. “So, whenever we were photographed with him, the press always said we were filming Mission Impossible. Everyone wonders what was faked and what wasn’t. Interestingly, one of the only things that was faked was the flag.”
Rumors started to swirl about Cruise’s involvement ahead of the Sunday, August 11, closing ceremonies.
“I was disappointed that little things leaked over the last couple of weeks,” Winston admitted. “Suddenly, more and more people need to know what you’re doing when you’re rehearsing in the Stade de France and booking venues.”
Winston and Cruise first met when the producer was working on The Late Late Show With James Corden. Throughout the talk show’s run from 2015 to 2023, Winston worked with Cruise on other stunts — and James Corden was included in all of them.
The 2024 Paris Olympics have created several picture-perfect moments since kicking off on July 26. Perhaps the most viral snap came during the third round of the men’s surfing competition on July 29. After completing a barrel ride in Teahupo’o, Tahiti, Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina soared in the air and pointed his finger toward the […]
This time, however, Cordon was not present and Winston confirmed that Cruise did climb Los Angeles’ Hollywood sign.
“I did look at doing the Hollywood sign for real. We had engineers up there quite a long time, working out how we could do it. I decided against it because I wanted it to be a surprise,” Winston explained, noting that that the Olympic rings on the sign were fake. “In the end, I think we could have done it, but then in March, the whole world would have seen pictures of the Hollywood sign covered in the Olympic rings. So, we did it with CGI. The Tom bit is real. He was up there. He climbed up the sign.”